The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1887-09-06
ThF 1}ailg 8nllFtin.
TUESDAY, SEPT. 6, 1887.
OUR PARIS LETTER.


were octagonal, but had only sin
gle hole in the wall to let in air and
light. The walls were feet thick,
with doors at each end. The cells
20 feet under ground, were not a
whit more than those at the SUBMITS
of the towers. The prisoner might
he drowned in the former, or stencil
ed to death by the inliltration OF
water from the putrid moat; or fro
zen or glilled in the attic, following
the season. No fire was allowed to
the poor prisoners: in fact, once
ranked in this elias, is was adieu to
hope. When Richelieu sent his
feudal barons to the Bastille, TO
break the neck of aristocratism,
the poor for gaol had only the mad
house of Bicetre.
The Governor of the Bastille had
salary of G0,000lrs. year; he
was monarch of all he surveyed,
ruled as absolutely as a Gar If
the prisoner was rich, his life was
not disagrecable in the citadel; he
could eat and drink as he pleased;
receive his friends, and if a dandy
like the Due de Richelleu, walk on
the "slopes" TO be admir- d by jeal-
Gus ladies'. 1t was as the strong
hold of arbitrarism, that the Bas-
tile revolted every lover of fair
play. To speak disrespectfully Of
a royal mistress or a court favorlte,
the lettre de cochet, signed in blank
by the king, had only to be filled
up, and handed to the Bastllle
guards and their Black Maria, for
execution. Hence it was a court
oppression, and Taine observers, the
court was then the tomb of the ma
lion. To demolish the Bastille was
to overthrow an outwork of royalty;
thus Farisions, eXaspcl at d at the
deception. extravaganza, AMI licen-
tiousness of the court, marched
after a rousing philippe from young
Camille Desmoullns in the Palais
Royal Gardens, to take the Bastllle.
TO recognize each other, q leaf was
plucked, and worn in hat or coat
Later it was found green was the
color of the kings brothers. livery
the Comte d. Altois, subsequently
Charles X. Red and blue the
colors of Paris, were at once adopt
ed, to which white, the symbol of
Constilutionalsm, was added. 1t
was thus the tri-color was created.
The capture of the Bastille cost
the lives Of 10 citizens, and there
were 70 wounded. The defenders
bad only one killed and one wound
ed, which illustrates the advantages
of fighting behind stone walls. The
best men at the assault were the
corps of BARRIERS: there were q
1000 master BARRIERS, each Of whom
appeared with five of his assistants
or apprentices, so that as usual,
Figaro was everywhere. Only seven
prisoners were found in the cells
thus the romantic tales about the
horrors discovered, must be taken
with the grain of salt. The people
after the capture, marched with tro-
phies to the Town Hall, and next to
the Parliament, where the keys OF
the Bastile were deposited; they
are now in the Archieres museum.
Next, the citizens attended at Notre
Dame, to celebrate TIE Deum, and
the most brave, to receive civic
crowns. Quite a run set in fol
stones from the Bastille, to he con-
verted into souvenirs, but the bulk
of them were employed to erect the
present pont de la Concorde.
In 1890 the first ball took place
on the partially cleared site Of the
BastilIe; SO trees in full leaf were
brought there, each representing
one of the departments. A pike
with a Phygian cap, was placed 1t
the midst OF this, the original of the
l4th July festivals. Around was
placarded up, every body free to
dance here" 1t was intended to
erect monument commemorative
of the fall of the Baslille in july
1892; the foundation stone and
everything was ready; but Louis
XVI did not come, after accepting
the invitation. The people scraped
his name off the memorials intend
ed to be enclosed in the foundation
stone. A month later the throne
was swept away; no monument was
erected. Napoleon / contemplated
erecting a fountain on the site, with
an elephant dashing up water with
It's trunk. The plaster model re-
manned in position for some years.
1t was reserved for Louis Philippe
to set up the present column Of
July, with the gilt winged Mercury
swapping the chains of absolutism
on the summit. Beneath the monu
ment is q vault, into which were
brought the bones of the few who
were known to have fallen in The
attack of 1889, rs well as the re-
mains of the patriots of the revolution
of $40. These had been tempora.
rily inferred in grass plat before
the Lovre, where numerous Egypt
ian mummies had been buried, a:
they were too numerous for the mu'
scum. This explains how The Shep'
l,orA Einnc and t,nnn.knrc of tho u